The House of Representatives has mandated a strict verification process done to prevent discrepancies in Bills passed by the National Assembly before transmitted to the president for assent.
To address these concerns, the House mandated the Clerk to the National Assembly to ensure that all authenticated Bills are reverted to the Clerks of both chambers for confirmation before transmission to the President.
Raising the motion on the floor of the House, Hon. Sada Soli informed that by doing so, the National Assembly would strengthen public trust in the legislative process and prevent unnecessary delays in governance caused by errors requiring corrections or rejections.
The Lawmakers agreed, there should be mandatory for all Bills, including Constitution alteration Bills, to safeguard their accuracy, integrity, and legitimacy.
They said Clerks of both Houses must verify the authenticity and accuracy of all Bills to certify that no alterations or errors occurred during authentication.
Hon. Sada Soli expressed concern over allegations that some Bills contained provisions different from what was originally passed by both chambers of the National Assembly.
He pointed to a recent instance where the President declined assent to a Bill due to errors, underscoring the need for meticulous scrutiny before final submission.
While the Authentication Act requires all passed Bills to be forwarded to the Clerk of the National Assembly for authentication, Soli noted that there is currently no mandatory provision requiring the Clerks of both the Senate and House of Representatives to verify the final version before it is sent to the President.
This, he argued, created a loophole that could lead to legislative inconsistencies, errors, and alterations that may undermine the integrity of the legislative process.
